William George (Bill) HUNGERFORD

HUNGERFORD, William George

Service Number: 5375
Enlisted: 4 March 1916
Last Rank: Private
Last Unit: 23rd Infantry Battalion
Born: Swan Hill, Victoria, Australia, November 1895
Home Town: Piangil, Swan Hill, Victoria
Schooling: Not yet discovered
Occupation: Engine driver
Died: Heidelberg, Victoria, Australia, 5 November 1964, cause of death not yet discovered
Cemetery: Not yet discovered
Memorials: Ballarat Australian Ex-Prisoners of War Memorial
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World War 1 Service

4 Mar 1916: Enlisted AIF WW1, Private, 5375, 23rd Infantry Battalion
1 Aug 1916: Involvement Private, 5375, 23rd Infantry Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '14' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Miltiades embarkation_ship_number: A28 public_note: ''
1 Aug 1916: Embarked Private, 5375, 23rd Infantry Battalion, HMAT Miltiades, Melbourne
20 Mar 1917: Imprisoned German Withdrawal to Hindenburg Line and Outpost Villages, Near the village of Lagnicourt
7 Jun 1919: Discharged AIF WW1, Private, 5375, 23rd Infantry Battalion

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Biography contributed by Evan Evans

From: In Remembrance: Hungerford and Associated Families in the Great War 1914-1918

HUNGERFORD, William George ('Bill')
(Also known as George William)
Regimental Number:   5375
Unit Name:   23rd Battalion, 14th Reinforcement

Religion:   Church of England

Occupation:   Engine Driver

Address:   Piangil, Vic.

Age of Enlistment:   20 years and 5 months

Enlistment Date:   4 March 1916, Melbourne, Vic.

Next of Kin:   Father, Mr Edmond Thomas Hungerford, Piangil, Vic.

Rank on Enlistment:   Private

Embarkation Details:   Unit embarked from Melbourne, Vic, on board HMAT A28 Miltiades on 1 August 1916

Rank from Nominal Roll:   Private

Unit from Nominal Roll:   23rd Battalion

Campaigns Served:   France

War Service/Promotions: 

Admitted to hospital, Plymouth, Devon, England, 25 September 1916 and discharged from hospital, Perham Downs, England, 6 October 1916. Embarked overseas on SS Onward, 19 November 1916, and reverts to the rank of Private. On 2 December 1916, he joined the 23rd Battalion from 14th Reinforcements, 23rd Battalion. Captured 20 March 1917, Vaux, France, and reported missing 24 March 1917. Prisoner of War interred at Gefangenenlager, Limburg, Germany. He was then repatriated and arrived back in England 28 November 1918.

 

 

 

 

Circumstances of Capture:

 

What happened immediately before Capture: On the morning of the 20th March my battalion without any artillery preparation launched an attack, having for its objective the capture of the village of Lagnicourt. We met heavy resistance from his shells and machine gun fire, and were forced to take cover in a sunken road with our numbers greatly reduced. His artillery had the range of this position, and an officer of another company advised us to go on further down the road towards the village. Some of us went on - about 23 in number - and had to take cover again in a trench on the side of the road. About dinner time the Germans made a raid on us. Our machine gun was out of action. Amidst the mud and snow our rifles became clogged and we were overpowered and captured. Pte. Brooks 'D' Coy, 23rd Battalion, was wounded by a bullet in the arm. He entered a German hospital three days later. I did not see him again. I was not wounded.

What happened immediately after Capture: We were all sent to Cambrai were we were employed on working parties for about nine months. I, Pte. Hungerford W. G., 23rd Battalion, saw, Pte. Hurrel W. H. 11th Battalion, reduced to a physical wreck owing to the continuous hard work he was forced to perform. He was taken to hospital in Stuttgart where he died. I was taken to Stuttgart on the 29th November, 1917, where I was employed in working parties. Here on several occasions I saw men brutally treated, and the food was always bad and insufficient. On the day the Armistice was signed I was at Stuttgart. We were taken to Kiel and made our way to Strasburg, where we met the French and arrived in Calais on 24th November 1918, and cross to Dover. (Signed. No 5375 Pte. Hungerford W.G.)

Fate:   Returned to Australia 17 March 1919 per HT Plassy. He married Catherine Ellen Evans, 4 May 1926, Christ Church, Swan Hill, Vic.

Place of Death:   5 November 1964, Heidelberg, Vic.

Place of Burial:   Nyah Cemetery, Nyah, Vic.

Medals/Citations:   British War Medal; Victory Medal

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